66 Free background, texture and clipart websites

We are continuing to explore the opportunities that are available for digital media buyers and have found 66 sites that offer free backgrounds, textures and clipart. These resources can be used by designers and photographers alike when using a number of elements to create new work. We have created the list on our directory pages:

• Free backgrounds and textures (40)
• Free clipart (26)

Whilst we have tested all the links and left out the ones we were not sure about we have not tested any of the offers. Like with free photography it pays of to be careful, please check out the comments on our free photography post to find some tips on how to deal with these free sites. Also, don’t forget that, because these sources are free, the number of downloads for most files is significant. This means the chance of seeing the design somewhere else is significant.  There’s a wide variety of elements on offer, from mainstream vector illustrations to a specialised army website, Nasa and even backgrounds provided by paint-providers.

Please let us know if you have any other sources, and if you have experience with any of the companies listed please rate them and leave your comments in the directory. If there are mistakes in the list we’d also like to know so we can correct things.

Picture: Stock Exchange | Free | Billy-Alexander